Sea turtles in Chavakkad portend bleak future for India's shrimp market

THRISSUR: Indian shrimps are unable to cross the Atlantic due to the absence of a 'turtle excluder device' that prevents sea turtles from getting entangled in nets. The ban on Indian shrimp imposed in the United States six years ago continues to date.

This has led to a decrease in India’s exports to other countries and a loss of crores. Sea turtle conservation is of great importance in the United States. Earlier, more than 30 per cent of the shrimp imported into the United States annually came from India, with about 60 per cent of this coming from Kerala.

The cost of the turtle excluder device is Rs 20,000. With fishermen not able to make their desired catch of the day and work plummeting, affording a device splashing big money is out of their plan. The central and state governments have not provided equipment free of cost or with subsidy. There is no equipment anywhere in India. Countries including the European Union, Japan and China are buying sea shrimp at reduced prices.

Parvati Nambiar, a research associate at the Sea Turtle Project at the Wildlife Institute of India in Dehradun, puts forward the immediate need to prioritize sea turtle conservation in India. Sea turtles are caught in trawling nets and pelagic nets. If the device is fixed in areas where fish are congregating, the turtles can escape the net. Most sea turtles die by getting caught in nets. Sea turtles are essential for the health of seagrass beds and coral reefs, which are beneficial to valuable marine life like shrimp, lobster, and tuna. They also have tourism value.

The Chavakkad, Blangad and Irattappuzha areas have the highest number of sea turtles in Kerala. Sea turtle protection has been implemented in these areas since 2007.